My 1YO is into shrieking these days. Serious, blood curdling, eardrum piercing shrieking. She does it sometimes when she's frustrated (e.g., yanking at my pants and swinging around my legs when she wants picked up as I'm trying to finish the dishes). But other times, she just does it, then looks pleased with herself. This morning, she was standing in front of the full-length mirror in the bathroom as I was brushing my teeth, looking at herself, throwing her hands in the air, and letting loose a multitude of glass shattering screams. Then laughing at her reflection.
I've read that you shouldn't respond to this, so that the kid doesn't think she has to go to these lengths to elicit attention. I've also read that neither do you want to leave the room as is recommended for other undesirable behavior, to avoid a negative lesson about emotions (for when she's actually doing it out of frustration, I guess); that is, so she feels her emotions are valid and you give her a safe place to vent.
Problem is, she does this all the time lately. And to be honest, a) she gets it from me; I remember thrilling in making noise when I was a kid, the louder the better b) it cracks me up, she gets the funniest look on her face afterwards, esp when she's just doing it for the fun of screaming.
So I try not to laugh at her and try to act like she's not doing it. But I don't think that's going over well with the other patrons of whatever business establishment we're in when she does this in public. AND, the other day I was in the far corner of my yard dumping some compost in the bin and I could hear her in the house yelling like a banshee. So I'm wondering how long before someone calls CPS on us.
Anyone been through/going through this and have any advice to offer? Or at least a timeframe for when it will subside?
Comments
haha! my 1 year old does the
haha! my 1 year old does the same thing! it IS funny. no advice on how to make it stop though...sorry.
This is so funny, because as
This is so funny, because as I sit here reading this my baby (almost six months) is sitting here shrieking at the top of her lungs, too. She does it ALL the time, and, from what your experience sounds like, she's not going to stop anytime soon! From what I've seen and read, it's more about them discovering their voice and learning to make new sounds than it is about them trying to cause a ruckus or misbehave (not that that's any consolation to your aching eardrums!). One thing that I do is make a game out of it with her. When she shrieks, I shriek back. She thinks it's funny, and we go back and forth shrieking at eachother for a few minutes. She eventually loses interest and decides she's done shrieking, quiets down and goes on to something else. I'm sure it's a different ballgame with an older baby; I haven't gotten there yet.
Good luck with your girl! I'm sure the shreieks will turn into songs before you know it!
the screams
My son, now seven months, is a screamer. His father did the same thing. We are, however, able to curb his screaming by erasing the smile from our face, stepping away from him a few inches, or just turning away from him momentarily (no more than a second is needed). The screams stopped within a week. The screams recently started again after I went to a graduation ceremony where the crowd was screaming for each graduate. The momentary body language showing displeasure worked for a second time, and it took even less time for my son to realize the screaming was a bit much for his Mom and Dad. I realize a one-year-old is more independent, but I thought I would throw it out there as a suggestion. And, of course, you may not want to teach her that screaming is bad. I know that many women have to receive training on how to scream, because they didn't know how to when they were attacked. Culturally, we discourage screaming and loud women, but it could be a skill that saves her life someday. Who knows?
Still doing it
Last night we're all in Target, my husband has her in the cart ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VERY LARGE STORE, and I can hear her "AIEEEkaaaa!" over and over. I kept chuckling to myself, thinking "yep, that's MY daughter". BTW, she's the same 1YO who's going through the physical aggression thing, I think the two may be linked, but haven't figured it out yet...
High-Pitched, Totally Unnerving Screams
My son Hank, who is about to turn one, has started doing this, too. Just in the past week or so, he lets out these terrible, ear splitting screams. They seem to be happening mostly when he's signing for another cookie and I'm telling him, "No More Cookies." He hasn't done it in public, yet, but tonight's dinner was pretty unnerving. The thing is, he's our first baby and none of our friends have children. My mother's solution (spank his little butt and tell him to hush) is NOT an option; my partner's mother's solution (give him more food) is also NOT an option. So we're stumped.
He's also started doing this at bedtime--just letting out these awful shrieks, as if someone's hurting him or he's really frightened. We've tried breastfeeding, holding him, cuddling him, but he just fights against us and screams. It's as if he's afraid or something.
Maybe this is all normal? What should we do? Toughen up? Any advice is welcome. This is my first post, though I've been reading the blogs and posts since I was pregnant. I could really use some compassionate and wise advice. Thanks.